Unspoken Words
by GillyflowerCalfuray
Summary: A captivating gaze from a mute wolf. Sought acceptance, bringing ugly scars. Unknown emotions, followed by unspoken words. Everyone has their scars. It's just a matter of time until everything is revealed about this newcomer. Tsume/OC  UPDATED
1. Silence

**Edit 3/8/11: Hello there! After forgetting about this fic for a while, I've re-posted it with some edits to improve the story and its readibility.**

**So, bolded text means that a character is speaking in their wolf form.**

**Disclaimer: Wolf's Rain belongs to Keiko Nobumoto, BONES studio, and Bandai Visual. I hold no claim to any part of it.**

* * *

They were in another decaying town, surrounded by more decrepit humans. There was no life in the place. There was no life in anything these days. Everything was breaking down, crumbling back into the earth from whence it had come. And it seemed as if everyone were content about it happening.

It made Tsume sick. It was one thing to see humans forced into desperation. But to see them in no better state than the world around them was disgusting. Did they have no pride left? Or had they given up their will to live?

**Their pitiful condition was repulsive. If anything, it helped him to despise the Nobles even more. The Nobles were an autocratic group of humans who thought that they were better than anyone else was, and amassed armies to impose their will. And, their internal power struggles were reflected onto the citizens. Hundreds of people could die due to a Noble's rage at a simple manner.**

And now the Nobles were sitting around, stuffing themselves and trying to steal Paradise while the rest of the world died.

Paradise. The one true haven that the world could offer, if there was one worthy to open it. None of the Nobles fit that description at all. Only wolves were able to open the gateway to Paradise.

Wolves, like Tsume and the rest of his pack. He didn't care much for them, but they were a pack nonetheless, bound by what they were and what they had to do. Which was to reach the real Paradise, not an illusion conceived by those damn Nobles.

"Hey, d'you think we could find some food here? We haven't eaten in ages." Whined the porky one, Hige. He was always hungry. It didn't make sense, what with all the meat he had on his bones.

"I dunno. I can't smell a thing." Toboe, the pack's tagalong runt, sniffed the air. "The air is almost dead here."

"Everything here is dead."

Kiba. _Gods,_ how that stupid white wolf got on Tsume's nerves. Everything, from his face to his infallible instinct to his whole nobler-than-thou attitude just pissed Tsume off. What made him so much better than the other wolves? Really, nothing did. He was forced to stoop to the same levels as the rest of them.

"Then we obviously have no chance of finding anything here. Let's get going." Tsume trudged ahead of the pack, but stopped suddenly. He had smelled something _very_ interesting.

"Tsume? What is it?"

He dashed off, following the scent and leaving the others behind. He _must_ track this down.

* * *

He soon found the source. There was a young woman sitting huddled against a wall. At first glance, she would have seemed to be any ordinary human. Her clothes were plain and ragged, and her long black hair was stringy, lank, and filthy. Her skin had the same pale, waxy look as the other haggard humans.

But then she looked up at him. The moment he looked into her violet eyes, he knew.

_This girl was a wolf._

She leapt to her feet and started gesturing wildly, her mouth open in shock.

"You—you're a wolf?" He asked incredulously, earning vigorous nodding. "What are you doing here?"

She put her hands together and put them under her head, miming sleeping.

"Hey…can't you talk?"

She shook her head. _She couldn't talk._ She started moving her hands again, speaking in sign language.

"What the hell are you trying to tell me?"

She dug around in her pockets, eventually producing a tiny chalkboard and scrap of chalk. She scrawled something down on it and handed it to Tsume.

It read, _I've never met another wolf before! What are you doing here? What is your name? And…when you leave, may I come with you? My name is Shizuka._

"I'm Tsume."

Shizuka extended her hand. He stared at it, then gave her back her chalkboard. She shook her head, and put out her hand again.

"What are you trying to do?"

She sighed, grabbed Tsume's hand, and shook it. He pulled rapidly away, as if he had been shocked by static electricity.

"Don't do that!" He snapped.

She cleared her board, then wrote, _Why? That's called a handshake. It's something that humans do when they meet each other. I thought it would be safer to do that instead of the ordinary greetings of our kind._

"I doubt that. These humans are so blind to the world; they wouldn't notice us unless we bit them."

She nodded, and then glanced around. Seeing that no one was nearby, she dropped her illusion of human form. Her fur was light gray and matted. **Finally, now we can speak without the board.** She was speaking in the manner of the wolves, a mental projection of sorts. It required no actual vocalization, a good thing for Shizuka.

"So, why are you here? This place is dead. Everyone can smell it."

**I stay because I used to be welcomed here. I only wish that I were again.**

"Lemme guess. Someone almost found out what you are."

**No, it wasn't that. What happened to me is a long story, and far too personal for two people who just met.** She stepped closer to him. **But, if you let me stick around, I'm sure that I'll be able to tell you someday.**

"Hm."

"Tsume!"

Someone shouted, causing Shizuka to instantly raise her illusion. A group of three young men came around the corner, startling her. She turned and ran as Tsume's pack approached.

"Tsume? Who was that?" Toboe jogged up to Tsume. "Who was that girl?"

"She was like us…but she was different."

"Different? How?"

"She couldn't speak."

Something suddenly registered with Tsume. When Shizuka had dropped her illusion, there had been a disturbance in the natural flow of her pelt, right across her throat. It might have been due to something being tied there, but it could have been a scar. He couldn't tell.

"Really? She couldn't?"

"No."

He _had_ to see her again. There was just something about her eyes that drew him in and held him fast.

"I have to find her again." He said aloud, startling his companions.

"What happened? This is unlike you, Tsume." Spoke Kiba in his stupid I-know-everything voice.

"I don't know. But I think she could be valuable to us."

"Was she cute?" Asked Hige. "She better be, cos it's been way too long since I saw a pretty girl."

"Appearance doesn't matter." Tsume actually thought that, if she cleaned herself up and got some food in her, Shizuka was beautiful. "Now, can you track her or not? I should have her scent on me."

"No need, I can smell her just fine. She went this way." Hige lead them after Shizuka's trail, Tsume close on his heels.

* * *

"She should be in here." Hige stopped at the door of a ramshackle apartment. "I wonder if she'll have food."

Tsume shoved past him and knocked on the door.

A minute passed, and then Shizuka came to the door. She was visibly startled by seeing Tsume again, and hurriedly beckoned the wolves inside. She locked the door behind them and shut the blinds on her windows before dropping her illusion.

**What are you guys doing in this town?** She asked.

"We're only passing though. We had hoped to find something to eat, but that hasn't been going well." Kiba responded, not at ease about being indoors.

**Ah, you'll have a hard time doing that here. There's nothing left for miles around. I'm honestly lucky not to have starved to death by now.**

"But that means that you know where to get it."

**I do, but it's not a pretty sight. Don't worry; I'll get something for you.** She sat down in front of them. **Now, I can tell that you're not just here for the culinary experience. Why did you leave wherever you came from?**

"We're searching for something."

**For what?**

Toboe piped up, "For Paradise!"

Shizuka was so shocked she nearly fell over backwards. **P-Paradise? You mean it's not a myth?**

"I…don't know for sure." He looked down. "But I know that, with Kiba, we'll definitely find out."

"That's why we're here." Kiba continued. "I smelled Lunar Flowers."

**You're not alone. I heard that dozens of wolves have come here because of the scent. But there are no flowers here—believe me, I've looked. No one comes anymore because of that.**

"Then we'll move out very soon." He drifted slightly towards the door.

**And then what kind of hostess would I be? Please, rest here tonight. I'll go get you food.** Shizuka raised her illusion, grabbed a canvas bag hanging by the door, and left her apartment.

* * *

"Hm, Tsume, I guess you did have a pretty good hunch about her." Hige was sprawled on a chair. "She's cute, huh? And she'll get us food!"

"Looks like I'm not the only one around here with a good instinct." Tsume glared pointedly at Kiba. "When have I ever lead you guys wrong?"

"I have never been at blame for any attacks on us." Kiba's face was flat.

"Oh really. If _you_ hadn't shown up, we would have never had to leave Freeze City."

"_I _wasn't the one purposely agitating the humans."

"Knock it off, you two!" Toboe put himself in-between the two older wolves. "We all would've had to leave some day. We're not meant to live in places like that."

"Says the pup raised by humans in that place."

"Toboe's right. Back off, guys." Hige got up and went to back the little wolf. "Can we save the internal power struggles for when we're not hungry? Cos arguing actually does make you hungrier, you know."

"Keep out of this, Hige!" Tsume growled. Any more of his meddling, and things would certainly come to blows.

"I will not! Besides, who knows if either of your instincts is right? We could very well be in a trap right now."

"No." Tsume, to his own surprise, found himself backing down despite how much he wanted to tear a few chunks of fur off the other three wolves. "This isn't a trap. There's no way that it could be."

"Huh? How can you tell?"

"Shizuka is not going to betray us. I can tell right now that she's not capable of it."

Toboe started to ask, "Shizuka? Is that her name?" but was immediately drowned out by Hige exclaiming, "You just met her! There's no way that you can know that about her yet!"

"Have you seen her eyes?"

That caught him off guard. "What?"

"Her eyes. There isn't a speck of malice or deceit in them." Her eyes were the clear, trustworthy eyes of a child, and yet there was a deep, captivating sense to them. Those were the kind of eyes that reflect everything about a person's character. Tsume had never seen eyes like hers before.

"So she has pretty eyes! So what?"

"She wouldn't do anything to us. We're the first wolves she ever met. If we were in danger, we'd be dead by now."

"Did you hit your head or something? When did you start trusting anyone?"

"She's different."

"Different? You're insane!" Hige was _this_ close to hitting Tsume across the face to try to bring the old him back. But, at that exact moment, the object of their argument burst through the door. She slammed it shut behind her, clutching her bag to her chest and breathing heavily.

"Are you alright, Shizuka?" Kiba asked. She nodded, then went to her small kitchen and dumped the bag's contents onto a counter. She had managed to get an entire ham and some slightly wilted herbs.

"Wow! Where did you find this?" Toboe exclaimed, eyes wide.

She dropped her illusion. **Let's just say that a certain shipping truck will never know what hit it.**

"Oh. Did they chase you?"

**For a bit. But I escaped by running across the rooftops. Still, this is too much talking. Let's eat.** She raised her illusion again and divided the ham into five pieces, keeping the smallest for herself. She was the only one who garnished it with herbs and ate it from a plate—the other wolves ate like wolves, allowing their true forms to be seen.

* * *

When they finished, Shizuka had a question for them.

**May I come with you guys?**

"Why do you want to?" inquired Kiba, no hint of his already formed decision showing.

**I want to come with you guys, wherever you go. I have nothing to risk by leaving or staying here.**

"You have your life. Is that not worth risking?"

**Everybody's gonna die someday. It doesn't matter when or where. Besides, I think that I can be valuable to you guys.**

"How so?"

**I'm very fast, and I can figure out how to get food no matter where we are. And I'm good at dealing with humans. I've lived with them my whole life, and I've found that they pity me because I'm mute. And I'm determined—I'm not afraid to get the things that I want or need.**

"And what is it that you want or need?"

**To come with you. I can feel it in my bones that I'm meant to follow you.**

Kiba sat back. "I'm not one to go against feelings as strong as yours. You may follow us, if you like. But I'm warning you now that the road shall be long and hard. There is no guaranteeing that we will succeed in our quest."

**I know that. That's why I'm coming. I can handle it.**

"What does the rest of the pack think?"

Hige sighed. "I guess I can't go against what Kiba's judgment says is best. Runt?"

"Sure, I'm happy about Shizuka coming with us!" Toboe beamed. "I think that she's just what we need. What about you, Tsume?"

"Yes. I believe that she should come." He wanted to go to her, to stare into her captivating eyes forever, but he forced himself to stay back. The emotions he was experiencing were completely new to him. His better judgment was against him saying it: as a small female, she would be lesser in strength and stamina than the larger males. She might be like another Toboe, except much quieter.

But he couldn't leave her here. He didn't understand why, but he could tell that there was something connecting their fates. She was obviously going to play a key role in their journey. He just wished he knew what that role would be.

**R-Really? Thank you!** She jumped to her feet, ears pricked. **I know that I won't let you guys down. **Her tail was wagging vigorously. **So, please rest here for the night. We've got a long trip ahead of us.**

**So, how was it? All forms of review are accepted and encouraged.**


	2. Enmity Upon Departure

Shizuka was already up and moving about when the first of the pack began to wake. She looked different—there was an air of life around her. She had cleaned herself up, and smiled when she caught a glimpse of herself on a reflective surface. Her hair was dirt free now, and pulled back into a tight braid. It was as if she was a new person.

**Good morning, everyone!** She chirped, dropping her illusion to speak. **I have breakfast ready for us. It's a bit meager, but hey, food is food. Better to have some than none, right? Come on, up and at 'em!**

"G-Good morning," Toboe yawned, sitting up and stretching. "How are you?"

**I'm feeling excellent, thank you for asking. Please, come eat.**

"Okay, thank you." Toboe got up and went to the table. As Shizuka served him, he noticed something about her human form. Even though it was fairly warm inside, she wore her coat buttoned to her chin and a scarf wrapped tightly around her neck. "Uh…are you cold, Shizuka? I think that the blankets are still warm; do you want one?"

She shook her head, smiling. She tugged the end of her scarf and shrugged.

"Does that mean that you're just used to them?"

She nodded.

"Oh, okay." He started eating. Shizuka went to rouse the other wolves, who hadn't slept very soundly. They were on edge about having slept inside, and bristled when she gently nudged them. Hige actually snapped at her, before rolling over and hiding his face.

**Whatever I've done to offend you, I'm sorry, okay? No need to try and take my paw off!** She shrunk back from him, tail low. He muttered darkly into the floor, hackles rising. **Breakfast is ready. Come get it when you've calmed down.** She turned and walked away, trying to ignore the growling from behind her.

**Honestly, what's up with him?** She asked Toboe.

"I dunno what changed. He was really happy to meet you, honestly." Toboe pouted at the shape hidden under the blanket.

**Is it because I seem untrustworthy or something?**

"No, not at all!"

**Well then, I don't understand what's going on. Oh, good morning, Kiba.**

The white wolf padded into the kitchen. **Good morning. Are you prepared to leave this morning?**

**Yes, right after breakfast.**

**I heard snarling. What happened?**

**Well…Hige snapped at me when I tried to wake him up. I'm a bit worried that I've offended him somehow.**

**I will talk to him. Our pack has no room for enmity.**

Kiba went back into the living room, passing Tsume on his way. Hige had burrowed down into the blankets, and received a hard jab to the flank. **Hige, wake up. Now.**

**Eh? Aw, come on! I was having a great dream about food.** Hige extracted himself from his little nest.

**There is food here.**

**Sweet!** He started for the kitchen, but Kiba stepped in his path. **What's going on?**

**Shizuka feels that she's done something to offend you. She is upset.**

**Oh, crap, I pissed her off? I thought that was Toboe poking me!**

**So you have no quarrel with her?**

**No, I don't.** Hige quickly went into the kitchen. Shizuka acknowledged him with cold eyes and a curt nod, busy tearing particularly stringy-looking potatoes into pieces.

**Uh, look, Shizuka, I'm, um…I'm sorry for snapping at you. I thought you were Toboe, honest! Really, I did! I'm not angry with you. I'm sorry.**

She let her eyes soften, and patted him gently on the head. All was forgiven. (She made sure to slip him an extra slice of potato, just to be nice.)

When they finished, it was time to leave. Shizuka gave one last glance at her home, and then exited it, never looking back. There was nothing for her to remember here except pain.

* * *

As the pack was leaving, she accidentally bumped into a human. He stepped back, but then focused on her face.

"Hey! You're the one who stole from me this morning!" He grabbed her scarf and yanked her forward, cocking his fist back to strike her. "I'll teach you to steal from me!"

The human quickly found himself on the ground. Tsume had come forward and punched him dead in the face, flooring the human.

"You leave her be." Tsume growled.

"Who the hell are you?"

"Someone not to be messed with."

Shizuka retied her scarf and stepped forward to the human. She started speaking very angrily in sign language, a very severe look on her face. He obviously didn't understand, so she kicked him in the ribs and ran, gesturing at the rest of the pack to follow her. They struggled to keep up—she was quite fast.

She waited for them by the wall separating the town from the wilderness beyond. They scaled it and jumped over, then ran off in their true forms. Shizuka didn't know what was ahead, but she knew that something was going to come out of it.

* * *

A short while later, Shizuka approached Tsume. **By the way, thanks for helping me out back there. That guy caught me off guard. I hadn't expected to run into him again.**

**It's fine. I just thought you'd be more vigilant.**

**What exactly is that supposed to mean?**

**It was just a human after all. It's hard to believe that you couldn't do anything to defend yourself.**

**You know, I could have said something like 'I was about to punch him when you stepped in'! But I decided to be kind and thank you for your help, however unnecessary it was.**

**You should've just gotten away, and then we wouldn't be having this conversation.**

**Enough with this attitude! Who are you to be bossing me around?**

**Someone who's older, wiser, and stronger than you are.**

She whirled around to face him and bared her fangs. **Who died and made you Alpha?**

He snarled at her. **Look, kid, I'm the Beta here. I outrank you.**

**Ugh! Why the hell did I decide to run with a pack that has a guy like **_**you**_** here?**

**If you don't like it, turn around and go home.**

_**No way in hell, budd**__y._ Her hackles were rising. **There's no **_**way**_** I'm leaving. I'm not going to condemn the others to your **_**rotten**_** attitude.**

He leapt at her and pinned her to the ground, fangs at her throat. **Listen here, you. You're here because **_**I**_** convinced the others to let you come along. They don't care if I kill you.**

_**Then do it!**_** I'm as good as dead already!**

Tsume hesitated. Did he really want to kill her over something as trivial as an attitude disagreement? He'd definitely get hell from the others for it. Besides, she was interesting. She was the first female he'd met, human or otherwise, who wasn't intimidated by him, and who didn't try to grovel at his paws.

But Shizuka _was_ intimidated at the moment. She quickly feigned her submission, putting her tail between her legs and looking away with her ears down. She would have whined, but she could not. She couldn't make a sound.

He let her up. **Be grateful I'm not in the mood for killing right now.**

The moment she got back to her paws, her combative state returned. **Oh, yes, because that would be **_**so**_** horrible.**

_**Don't. Cross. Me. Again.**_

**Have it your way, O badass Beta.** She flicked her tail up and bounded away.

* * *

That _female_ was going to drive Tsume to murder! Who was she to defy him so openly? How could she be so blind as to pack etiquette? He could understand how Toboe was, but Toboe knew his place as the runty Omega. She wasn't the Omega, but she wasn't the Beta. And she was _especially_ not the Alpha. If she and Toboe weren't thick as thieves, she'd be dead with her throat torn open.

**Oi! Get a move on, O badass Beta!** Shizuka called at him from where she was far ahead, scouting the area.

Yes. Tsume was _definitely_ going to be driven to murder by her.

* * *

**Hm...I can't help but not be happy with this one. I've pitted one majorly tsundere character against another! But don't worry, I'll manage to fix it. Somehow...**


	3. The Way We Are

**UPDATE 3/9/11**

**So, I've re-written Tsume's little mental rant. I want to give a special shoutout to WolvesKey, for pointing out the drastic change in Tsume's attitude between this and the previous chapter. In the old version of this chapter, he really seemed like he hated her, in stark contrast to his feelings at the beginning of the story. So, here he is, with an improved soliloquy.**

* * *

Kiba hadn't been lying when he said that the journey would be rough. The pack had been running for days on end, with barely anything to eat. There was nothing around except rocks and snow. Shizuka now regretted boasting about her skill at finding food. It was becoming harder and harder for her to keep up with what she had promised. She wondered if she would be left behind because of it. She probably would. With the kind of mission they were on, they couldn't afford having a useless tagalong.

She could also perceive the general distemper between the pack members. It was actually quite obvious how no one knew exactly what was going on. The only thing that was known was that they were all cold, hungry, and ready to snap at a moment's notice.

* * *

Tsume was quite possibly the most irritated in the pack. He had shown his pack a different side of himself, one that he almost forgotten had existed. What had come over him? Shizuka completely overwhelmed him. It had been such a long time since he saw a female wolf. He had almost forgotten about them, about the way they looked, their scent, their eyes…

Especially their eyes. Eyes full of kindness and love, eyes that retained a spark of life even in the most desperate times. Beautiful…violet eyes…

He gave himself a mental slap. He needed to stop thinking about that. So Shizuka was a female, so what? It didn't make her less annoying.

Back in Freeze City, he had thought himself above the wiles of the females. He didn't see them in a sexual light. He saw all in a nondescript blur. Even when his body drove him to seek a mate, he resisted. They were nothing.

But now, there was a female wolf in the pack, and everything had changed. He could feel the wall he had placed around his emotions slowly being chipped away by her mere presence. There was just something about her, especially those eyes of hers, that drew him in and held him fast. He had never seen eyes as open and true as hers, with nothing hidden in them. It was rare to find a set of eyes like that, ones that revealed their owner's soul.

…What was going on with him?

* * *

Tsume was snapped from his reverie by a piercing whine. He looked up—and beheld two flying ships trying to shoot each other out of the sky! There was a tiny one, being shot at by a _massive_ warship. The latter was easily a kilometer wide, and had about twenty guns mounted on her front. But the tiny one was nimble, easily avoiding the fire.

He _hated_ the ships. The small one was obviously a Noble's private transport, and the big one belonged to the police force from Freeze City. It was bad enough that the world was dying, and the Nobles trying to kill each other on top of it was worse.

Shit—the small one got hit, and was falling down. Just before it exploded, a tiny figure jumped out, and went twirling towards the top of a mountain.

Kiba had frozen, eyes glued to the figure. He suddenly took off after it, in the direction of the place it had landed.

"Hey! Kiba, where are you going?" Hige shouted. "What's going on?"

"Come on, let's go after him!" Toboe exclaimed, chasing after his Alpha. The rest of the pack followed suit.

* * *

"Kiba, what are you chasing?" Toboe yelled over the roaring wind. They were scaling the mountain, and were several hundred feet up. Toboe had been asking questions like that the entire climb, although he hadn't gotten a response yet.

"Can't you feel this?" Kiba responded, somehow managing to keep his ordinary tone despite being nearly drowned out by the wind.

"Uh, I've got a sorta tingly feeling in my chest…is that what you mean?"

"Yes." He pulled himself higher. He was locked onto his target, whatever it was. A faintly sweet scent was being brought down by the wind, obviously what he was following.

* * *

Once they reached the summit, they were in for a surprise. Instead of the dead, barren landscape they were so accustomed to there was a lush, green meadow with pink and lavender flowers growing in abundance. In the center of a meadow, there was a lake, and standing in that lake was a slender maiden. She looked towards the wolves, eyes joyful—her _bright red_ eyes. Every single part of her eyes was red. Kiba dropped his illusion immediately and went to her, being accepted into her open arms.

"We meet at last." The maiden whispered to him.

Back with the others, Shizuka was incredibly puzzled. She tugged on the sleeve of Hige's jacket and gestured towards the maiden with a confused expression on her face.

"Huh? Oh! That's Cheza. She's a Flower Maiden."

The confused expression remained.

"She was stolen from a bunch of Nobles back in the city that we came from. She was made from a flower! And she's the one who will lead us to Paradise."

She nodded, suddenly understanding. The sweet scent that had been drifting on the wind was coming from Cheza. She was a Flower Maiden, which made strange sense to her. There was an immediate, instinctual grasp that their fortunes had been changed for the better.

Paradise was in their grasp.


	4. Scars of the Past

**WAAAAAH, IT'S BEEN SO LONGGGGGGGGGG ORZ**

**I'm so sorry for disappearing like that ;_; And I can't thank you guys enough for continuing to favorite, subscribe, and review this story. Seriously, seeing those little emails popping up on my phone make me so happy, and keep me writing. I can't believe I let this sit in my documents folder for so long...argh! XD**

* * *

It was hard to believe that a blind maiden could lead the pack anywhere, but that was exactly what was happening. The artificial Flower Maiden, Cheza, knew the way to Paradise, and the wolves were following her.

But first, she insisted upon taking them to the place where she was born. Back in the meadow in which they had met, there was an ancient castle abandoned to the mercy of the elements. No human or animal had stepped foot within its crumbling ruins for generations. Whispers circulated that it was haunted by the ghost of a Noble that had lost everything trying to reach Paradise, even his soul. Those rumors seemed quite plausible. Trying to reach Paradise was a deadly challenge. If there was even the smallest hint of unworthiness in your soul, you would be spat out into eternal torment.

This, of course, meant that no human would ever be able to reach it. Stories passed down from the beginning of time told that wolves are descended from gods, and humans were created to be their servants. Others said that wolves were sent by the gods to save the humans from vicious monsters. Either way, wolves were higher beings than humans, and thus the only creatures worthy of reaching Paradise and returning to the gods.

* * *

There was another reason besides the rumors why the castle had been abandoned. The place was a death trap! Entire sections of walls and floor had crumbled into nothingness, and what was still standing had been permeated by plant life.

And yet, Cheza was navigating the wreckage with no trouble. "This one was born here, in this castle." She said, referring to herself as 'this one' for some strange reason. Shizuka held back, not liking the situation (or the floor). Her instinct was telling her to trust the Flower Maiden, but her mind was telling her otherwise. How was she to know that this wasn't a trap? She was confident in her skills to defend herself, and wished greatly that she would never have to use them.

"Everyone! This one is home!" Cheza suddenly darted forward into what once might have been a laboratory. Broken, weathered glass littered the floor around long-defunct tanks, but other than that, the room was empty. "No one is here…they all withered…and died…"

All of a sudden, Hige sniffed the air and looked back the way they came. Something was obviously not right, because he took off. He was back in seconds, shouting, "Guys! We've got trouble!"

"What?"

"We're surrounded!"

"I _knew_ we shouldn't have come here." Tsume growled, glaring at Cheza. "Kiba, leave that _thing_ and let's go!"

"This is not Cheza's fault." Kiba shot back.

"She must've let the Nobles know where we are!"

"Hey, unless you guys feel like getting pumped full of bullets we should get moving!" Hige intervened. "They have guns!"

"I'm not going anywhere with that _thing!"_

Shizuka stepped between the two warring wolves and shoved them apart as hard as she could. She pointed harshly at their exit and stamped her foot, a clear message to get the hell out of there.

Cheza began calmly walking away. "This way." Kiba immediately followed, but Hige and Tsume decided to run the opposite way—right towards the threat. They'd get themselves killed! Shizuka chased them, trying to bring them back—

And was promptly met by a barrage of bullets. She jumped behind a protruding slab of stone just in time to avoid being shot, her mouth hanging open in shock. She had never been shot at before! What was going on, and why were she and her friends being attacked?

She couldn't let them all be killed, could she?

She had just charged out from her hiding place when the bodies of two soldiers hit the ground and Hige wiped their blood from his lips. "What are you doing? Get a move on!"

Well, her chance to prove herself had just flown out the window. But she didn't need to be told twice. She turned and sprinted towards the exit, swearing violently in her mind. This wasn't going to end well….for those soldiers, anyways. They would _pay_ for trying to hurt her new friends!

There must've been more entrances to the castle, because the next corridor she turned down was blocked by more gun-toting soldiers. But this time Shizuka was ready for them. She dashed at one of them, driving herself straight into his chest and killing him with a sharp bite to the jugular vein. When she looked up, it was directly into the barrel of a gun, so she tensed to spring before the shot was fired.

But, remarkably, Tsume was faster than both of them. By the time Shizuka blinked, her assailant was dead, pinned down by an incredibly angry, incredibly heavy black wolf. She nodded quickly in thanks, and then propelled herself further down the hall.

"Hey! Over here!" Toboe signaled them from a doorway, waving vigorously. She averted her course and peeled off towards him, feet scrabbling on the stone. There was no grip—ouch, that was a wall. That hurt. But there wasn't time for pain! Pain could come later, when her life _wasn't _in danger. "We're in here!"

The room in question had been dominated by a massive tree. Its trunk nearly took up an entire wall, and its roots made the floor treacherous to walk over.

"This is a dead end! We're trapped, idiots!" Hige snapped, skidding to a halt. Shizuka looked around for an exit. The tree had broken through the ceiling, and if someone gave her a boost, she could probably climb up the trunk. Or, if they stamped hard enough the floor might crack…

While she was pondering, Cheza calmly walked forward and placed a palm upon the rough bark. With a noise like a sigh, a tunnel opened in the wood. How had that happened? Toboe let out a startled squawk at the sight of it.

"This way." Cheza walked through with no problem, although the wolves were hesitant to follow. Once they had all entered, the door closed behind them, plunging them into darkness.

* * *

The tunnel led true, and deposited them on the lee of the mountain, on a path sheltered by trees. They made their way down, with Hige and Toboe arguing the entire way about how Cheza was able to navigate even though she was blind. This argument was sparked when Cheza nearly walked right over a cliff, but suddenly corrected herself at the last minute. Hige was convinced that she had antennae, but Toboe insisted that she didn't.

Shizuka had a different opinion. **You two are both wrong. She uses echolocation like a bat!**

"That's dumb. Does she look like a bat to you?" Hige scoffed.

**It's a better idea than she having antennae is! She must have sonar in her head or something.**

"Stop it, you guys. I don't think she likes it. All this arguing is making her uncomfortable." Toboe stepped in.

"It's because you're all uncomfortable around her." Kiba state simply, putting his arm around Cheza. "Why do you not trust her?"

"It's simple. She was made by the Nobles, and that's reason enough." Tsume stopped and glared at him.

"We'd all be dead now if it wasn't for her!"

"We wouldn't have _been_ shot at if she weren't here."

**Would you two just **_**knock it off?**_ Shizuka shoved her way between them for the second time that day. **It's bad enough that our lives are in danger. We don't need all this arguing!**

"Y-Yeah! I agree with her!" Toboe exclaimed. "We're all tired and hungry, and fighting will just make it worse."

**Thank you, Toboe.**

"So, let's all find somewhere to rest, and…" he trailed off. A faint melody was drifting though the air, sending waves of fatigue through the wolves' bodies. Cheza was looking up towards the moon, humming to herself. Toboe was the first to slump to the ground with a contented sigh.

"Dammit Toboe, don't fall asleep!" Tsume barked, rubbing his forehead.

"But my body is out cold…"

"Don't—"

**It's so comfortable over here…sleep over here, Tsume…** Shizuka murmured, curling up with her tail over her nose.

"Stop…" He collapsed next to her, his head landing on her flank. He wanted to move, but his body refused to obey him…and she smelled nice…

Sleep took them all within seconds.

* * *

Shizuka was the last to wake the following morning. Her back was sore from the weight of Tsume's head, so she stood and arched her body upwards like a cat, then back downwards to get her spine back into place.

**Good morning, **she yawned and looked around, **where is everybody?**

"They've all gone to get supplies." Said Tsume, leaning against a tree. "And they left me here with" he gestured towards Cheza _"it."_

**That's no way to refer to Cheza. I'm here too, you know. Remember? You were using me as your pillow all night.**

"I didn't mean to. My body shut down."

**Suuure it did. You liked it, didn't you?**

"Hmph."

**Well, hmph right back to you. If I could, I'd growl right now.**

"Why can't you? You said a long time ago that you'd explain once we got to know each other. Well, we know more about each other now."

**True. Can I speak to you privately about this?**

"Sure."

They went away from where they had slept, far enough that Cheza was still in their sights, but couldn't hear them.

**I can't show you in this form.** She said sadly, then raised her illusion. She unwound her scarf and unbuttoned her coat. With a deep breath, she pulled the collar away and exposed her throat. A hideously puckered black scar contrasted deeply with her pale skin, stretching it taut.

Tsume stared in disbelief. He had seen bad scars, including his own, but none could match this. It hurt just to look at. "What _happened_ to you?" He whispered incredulously, his hand unconsciously moving to touch it.

She turned her head and mimed a slicing movement over her scar.

"Y-You were cut there?"

She nodded, then pulled her chalkboard from her pocket. She wrote out, _I was cut by a dirty blade. The wound became infected. Doctors managed to save my life, but my vocal chords were ruined._

"Why did someone hurt you?"

_I used to work at a bar. A patron did this to me when I tried to throw him out when he got too drunk._ She pulled back and removed her illusion. **I lost everything I had that day.**

"I…that's so terrible. I'm so…I'm so sorry." He muttered, unsure of what to say. Cruelty, it seemed, did not distinguish between species.

**Nothing mattered to me. Every day was an empty blur. I'm broken inside, Tsume. I couldn't see anything, there was no hope or light in front of me. I thought that the only way out was my death.**

**That is…until I met you. You were, to be honest, a beacon in the fog. I hadn't met another wolf before you came to my town. For the longest time, I thought that I was a human because I just felt so unworthy.**

He hesitated in replying to that. It astounded him that parts of her story were so similar to his. She was _his_ beacon in the fog. Some deep, untouched yearning he had long since locked away had been awoken. He wanted to hold her, to banish her feelings of despair. He wished that he could hear her voice. In his mind, it was a smooth, deep contralto.

"It seems we are kindred spirits, you and I." He spoke without thinking. Wait a minute, what_ was_ he thinking? They were on a dangerous journey, with no time for sappy exchanges of life stories and feelings.

**Yes, I believe that as well.**

"I—"

"_GHOOOOOOOST!"_


	5. Ghosts and Secrets

_"GHOOOOOOOOOST!"_ Toboe screamed, sprinting into the clearing in a panic. He skidded to a halt with Hige on his heels, each of them holding something. "Guys! Where's Kiba, we saw a ghost!"

Tsume stalked over. "He's not here. And ghosts don't exist, you idiots."

Shizuka walked over to him and lightly cuffed him upside the head, glaring slightly. She then walked to Toboe and wrapped her arms around him, making little "ssh" noises as she stroked his hair.

"Gah— Shizuka! You're embarrassing me!" He squirmed in her grasp.

She dropped her illusion and wound around his feet. **Poor thing, you must've been scared half to death.**

"I'm not a baby! That ghost almost got us!"

"What ghost?" Kiba appeared behind Hige and firmly laid a hand on his shoulder.

"Yikes! Dude, don't do that!" He bristled. "We were in the town back there getting some stuff, and the runt got jumpy because some old lady was following us around. She's probably harmless."

"I couldn't smell her, which means she was a ghost!" Toboe interjected.

"I bet your nose was just clogged up by the smell of humans."

"Did you smell anything? Don't tell me that you did."

"I...uh..."

"Ha! Gotcha!"

"The only thing I could smell the whole time was that stinky thing you're holding. What is that, anyways?" Hige poked the parcel in Toboe's hands.

"It's a present for Cheza! I thought she might get cold at night." Toboe opened the package, revealing what looked to be the raggedy pelt of some poor animal.

"She's a flower, she won't get cold." Hige pinched his nose and stepped back a few feet. "It reeks to high heaven!"

**It's horrid! Why did you get that?** Shizuka hid her nose under her paws.

"Just watch, she'll like it a lot." Toboe went and laid the smelly thing over Cheza's shoulders. She didn't move to take it off, but her face slowly fell. "Oh, so you don't like it..."

Hige swept the smelly thing off her shoulders. "Runt, you're horrible at giving gifts. Here, I know she'll love mine." His gift turned out to be a pair of pink boots.

"Boots?"

"I thought these rough mountain roads may hurt her delicate feet."

"Even though she's a flower?"

"Shut up, runt." He offered them to Cheza, causing her face to light up. She put them on and jumped up, bounding about the clearing. The expression on her face was so joyful that it made her look beautiful.

Shizuka had never seen someone so carefree. Seeing such a wonderful smile was amazing, she had to join in the merrymaking. She got up and joined hands with Cheza, dancing in circles with her. As they skipped around, she could see that everyone was smiling—even the ever-stoic Tsume had the faintest hint of an upturned mouth.

The peace was so wonderful, until Cheza stopped dead in her tracks to stare at something. Hige and Toboe immediately bolted, screaming, "It's the ghost!"

Shizuka stepped in front of Cheza, and tried to take in what was so startling. It was an old woman, with long white hair and shriveled skin. She wore such dark sunglasses that no one could see her eyes. She wasn't scary at all, so why had those two run away from her?

But then it hit her. The old woman had no scent whatsoever, which must have been why she was able to sneak up on them.

"You children...what are you doing with that girl?" she croaked.

"It is none of your business. Leave us." Kiba stood in front of his pack.

"You wolves would lead this poor maiden to her destruction." The old woman came closer, and poked Kiba in the chest. "I know too much of your kind."

"Lady, you're crazy, get out of here!" Hige piped up from behind a tree.

"Silence! Impudent pups. You cannot bring her with you."

"How do you know so much about us?"

She took off her sunglasses, revealing red eyes the same as Cheza's. "This maiden is a perfected form. I will not let you destroy her."

Cheza came out from behind Shizuka. "This one can sense that you are like this one."

"I am called a Hanabito. I am an imperfect form of what you are. Come with me, young maiden. I will not allow these wolves to corrupt you." The Hanabito took Cheza's hand and walked away with her.

"Hey, wait a minute!" Kiba raced after them, followed by the rest of the pack.

* * *

The Hanabito pulled Cheza into a room set within a tree. The rest of the pack squished themselves in, sitting on the ground or leaning on the walls. The only chair in the room was occupied by Cheza, and the Hanabito knelt at her feet.

"My dear, sweet child. You cannot truly think that the wolves will save you. Before you, I lived with other Hanabito. They all withered and died. I felt their songs dying, even after I left that place." She said sadly, still holding Cheza's hand.

"This one knows that place. This one was born there too, and there were others. This one heard their screams after being taken away. They all withered and died because of this one!" Cheza wailed and held her head.

**That place? Do you mean the ruin where those people attacked us?** Toboe asked, curled up in his true form in a patch of sunlight.

"Yes. This one was born there. But it is in ruins now. No one else can live there."

**That's really sad. I would be sad if my home got destroyed.**

"Young maiden, you must not go with these wolves. It will only lead to more destruction."

"This one has made up its mind. This one knows that it is its destiny to lead the others to Paradise." She stood up. "This one knows that you do not want it to go, but this one must. This one cannot fight destiny."

"Then you have chosen your fate." The Hanabito got up and went to the door. "I cannot fight destiny." She showed the pack out.

* * *

"I'm going back to the town with Cheza. We're going to get supplies." Kiba stated, taking Cheza's hand to guide her down the road. "Stay here. We'll be back soon."

"Hey...did we ever say anything about Paradise to Cheza? She seemed to know about it already." Hige wondered aloud, once she was out of hearing.

"Huh. I don't think we did." said Toboe.

"Then how would she know that's where we're going?"

"..."

* * *

As they were waiting, Shizuka sat down next to Tsume. **Hey, about our discussion...**

**I remember. You told me about getting your scars. He looked over at her and dropped his illusion so they could talk privately.**

**Could we keep that between us? I don't want the others to know. I don't want them to pity me.**

**I don't.**

**Of course you don't, it's not in your nature.**

**You're right.**

A few minutes of silence passed.

**So, when will you tell me your story?** Shizuka asked.

**My story? What do you mean?**

**This.** She poked his scar with her paw. **What's its story?**

**I don't like talking about it.**

**Oh, come on!** She wagged her tail. **I told you mine, so now you tell me yours.**

**Now's not the time.**

**When is?**

**Later.**

**I'll hold you to that.**

* * *

A short while later, Kiba and Cheza came back, the latter now wearing a cloak that matched her boots.

"The old one has died... This one cried for her." Cheza said sadly as the pack gathered around her. "This one needs to know: can this one stay with you?"

"No one is asking you to leave, Cheza." replied Kiba. "We all want you here."

"Really? This one can stay?"

No one objected.

* * *

**Dear Everyone: I am _so, so sorry _for leaving you all in the lurch. I've been going through some things which meant I was unable to keep up with this fic, and I feel horrible. Please forgive me for being away for so long. I love you all, seriously. Every review, even if it's just "Good job!" makes me feel so happy. I've been in a burst of inspiration lately, and with summer rapidly coming up, I'll have far more time to write and keep you guys happy.**

**With love and bunny snuggles,  
Gilly**


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